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Tendencia de acción

La tendencia a la acción es un término psicológico de la ciencia del comportamiento que se refiere al impulso de un individuo a realizar una conducta particular , especialmente ...

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La tendencia a la acción es un término psicológico de la ciencia del comportamiento que se refiere al impulso de un individuo a realizar una conducta particular , especialmente como componente de la emoción . Representa la compulsión inicial de una persona hacia una conducta dirigida a un objetivo en respuesta a estímulos ambientales, abordando directamente las emociones experimentadas. [ 1 ]

Es importante destacar que las tendencias de acción no garantizan que se produzca un comportamiento. En cambio, sirven como predictores eficaces de cómo las emociones guían las acciones, mostrando patrones de disposición para involucrarse o evitar situaciones [ 2 ] dependiendo del contexto emocional. [ 1 ] En la ciencia del comportamiento, las emociones de un individuo dirigen su respuesta a las circunstancias o relaciones actuales; por lo tanto, la tendencia de acción, como factor constituyente de la respuesta emocional general del individuo , es un impulso temporal e inmediato. [ 3 ] [ 4 ]

El papel de las emociones

Existen diversas emociones distintas —como la alegría , la tristeza , el miedo , el asco y la ira— que dan lugar a tendencias de acción, como la aproximación, la inacción, la retirada y el ataque. [ 5 ] La valencia emocional —si la emoción experimentada es positiva o negativa— surge del grado de congruencia entre los objetivos de un individuo y su entorno. Los entornos que favorecen el logro de objetivos suelen generar emociones positivas y conductas de aproximación. Por el contrario, los entornos que limitan los recursos necesarios para alcanzar los objetivos activan emociones negativas y conductas de evitación. [ 6 ]

Sin embargo, las tendencias de acción no son fijas. [ 7 ] Son sugerencias inmediatas para una respuesta en un conjunto particular de circunstancias, informadas por el conjunto de preferencias de un individuo en el momento actual, que se proporcionan en otra parte de la emoción. Por lo tanto, la tendencia de acción cambia a medida que un individuo pasa de un estado emocional a otro, y se modifica por las capacidades cognitivas y fisiológicas presentes del individuo. [ 8 ] [ 2 ] La misma emoción puede conducir a diferentes tendencias de acción, lo que explica por qué las respuestas emocionales no siempre se traducen en comportamientos consistentes. [ 1 ]

Formación

Las tendencias de acción se desarrollan a partir de la interacción entre la experiencia emocional, las respuestas fisiológicas y los procesos cognitivos.

Fundamentos biológicos y cognitivos

Biologically, action urges are part of evolved survival mechanisms, preparing the body to rapidly adapt and respond to environmental challenges.[9][6] As the motivational component of emotional decision making, action tendencies are responsible for the preparation and direction of motor responses. Under the emotional framework, motivation can be thought of as the state of readiness to engage in a certain action with the goal of achieving a desired result.[10] The action tendency is distinct from cognitive, physiological, and expressive components, which likewise determine an individual's behaviour.[11][12][13]

  • Survival mechanisms: A key example is the Fight-or-Flight response induced by fear. This activates the sympathetic nervous system, realising hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, to prepare the body to either attack (fight) or escape (flight) the perceived threat. These physiological changes create a readiness to act shaped by an internal risk assessment to select the most effective behavioural strategy for the situation.[14]
  • Regulatory drives: The hypothalamus plays a central role in regulating motivational drives that underlie action tendencies. Its interaction with the automatic nervous system and endocrine system helps maintain homeostasis and regulate essential survival-based motivations.[15] These drives are essential in adjusting goal priorities that are more likely to support survival in response to the changing environmental conditions.[6]
  • Sistema de recompensa: El sistema de recompensa del cerebro , en particular la vía mesolímbica , refuerza las tendencias de acción. Cuando un comportamiento conduce a un resultado deseable, se libera dopamina , reforzando la relación entre el estímulo y el comportamiento asociado. Los emparejamientos repetidos forman asociaciones aprendidas, aumentando la probabilidad de que contextos emocionales específicos desencadenen impulsos conductuales similares. Sin embargo, el refuerzo también puede promover tendencias conductuales contraproducentes, como la adicción , donde la liberación excesiva de dopamina crea señales de "superaprendizaje". [ 15 ] Un sistema de recompensa no reactivo puede motivar a los individuos a buscar una mayor estimulación a través de comportamientos antisociales , reforzando las tendencias de acción de búsqueda de recompensa que alivian estados desagradables. [ 16 ]

Tendencias de acción de aprendizaje

Las tendencias de acción pueden aprenderse mediante condicionamiento . La exposición repetida a entornos emocionales y evaluaciones similares enseña a los individuos qué comportamientos son más efectivos o gratificantes. [ 16 ] Este aprendizaje crea expectativas sobre eventos futuros, lo que resulta en la experiencia de "emociones anticipadas" que motivan el comportamiento antes de que se sienta la emoción. [ 1 ] Baumgartner, Pieters y Bagozzi (2008) argumentaron que, a través de patrones comunes de experiencia, los individuos muestran preferencias para seleccionar acciones que se predice que generarán emociones positivas y evitar las negativas. Por lo tanto, las tendencias de acción pueden no surgir únicamente de experiencias emocionales inmediatas, sino también ser causadas por la expectativa sobre un resultado emocional. [ 1 ] [ 5 ]

Varias teorías y experimentos respaldan la idea de que las tendencias de acción pueden prepararse para producir un resultado deseado antes de la aparición de la emoción. Por ejemplo, un experimento de 2010 entrenó a adictos para que se acercaran o evitaran el alcohol, y se encontró que la tendencia de acción de los sujetos hacia el alcohol se vio afectada positivamente de acuerdo con la condición de entrenamiento. [ 17 ]

Teoría de la evaluación y tendencias de acción

Appraisal theory argues that emotions stem from an individual’s subjective evaluation of events in relation to personal goals. Emotional evaluations determine how learned appraisals manifest into specific action tendencies. As emotions become conceptualised through appraisal, behavioural urges reflect a person’s interpretation of the environment, distinguishing whether a particular behavioural response is compatible with the situation.[5] Situations appraised as motive-consistent – those that align with personal goals - elicit positive emotions, creating impulses to seek more of the stimuli. Motive inconsistent situations elicit negative emotions, where impulses experienced are aimed to reduce the stimuli.[5]

However, the relationship between emotional valence and action tendency is not always congruent. Appraised intensity and emotional salience also influence the activation of actions.[18] For example, although fear is perceived to have a negative valance, it can evoke approach (fight) or withdrawal (flight) tendencies, depending on the perceived threat intensity.[9] Lower to moderate intensity fear leads to attack tendencies, whereas high intensity fear results in flee tendencies.[6]

Approach and withdrawal tendencies

Charles Darwin (1872), in “The Expressions ofthe Emotion in Man and Animals”, proposed action tendencies as generally falling under two main categories: approach and withdrawal.[19][6]

  • Approach tendency: Guide behaviour towards rewarding stimuli. Commonly associated with positive emotions and motive-consistent appraisals. Approach-related emotions include joy, excitement, and sometimes anger.[20]
  • Withdrawal tendency: Guide behaviour away from potential harm and reject undesirable stimuli. Commonly associated with negative emotions and motive-inconsistent appraisals. Withdrawal-related emotions include fear, disgust, and sadness.[20]

Two cognitive systems maintain action tendency activation

Source:[6]

Neuroimaging studies show the left frontal cortex links to approach tendencies (BAS), while the right frontal cortex links to withdrawal tendencies (BIS).[21]

Cognitive and social regulation

The activation, suppression, and regulation of action tendencies are influenced by cognitive, social, and contextual factors. One primary regulatory mechanism is cognitive reappraisal – the ability to reinterpret emotionally-inducing events to align with personal goals.[22] This mechanism allows individuals to adjust emotional impulses prior to the full onset of a reaction.[23] Studies show it effectively reduces negative emotions and promote positive emotions to generate more socially appropriate tendencies.[24][23]

Social environments and cultural norms also shape cognitive responses to emotional events.[25]Social Identity Theory argues individuals internalise the beliefs and behaviours of their in-groups – groups they identify with – creating strong desires to perform actions that reinforce conformity to group norms.[18] For instance, while anger may promote aggressive, confrontational urges, societal norms and law-compliance often inhibit these behaviours.[1] This is often mediated by fear of punishment or reputational damage that override antisocial tendencies.[16]

Perceived action tendency may also play a role in social conditioning and self-esteem which is observable at an early developmental stage. In 1979, experimental data demonstrated that children who self-reported more frequent assertive and aggressive tendencies experienced lower self-image and negative social stigma. These findings suggest that the self-observation of behavioural tendencies plays a significant role in the construction of identity and the regulation of behaviour.[26]

However, highly irrational emotions present a harder regulatory challenge, evident in psychological disorders like depression, anxiety and panic, where involuntary emotions govern action tendencies.[5] This can lead individuals to act on irrational and antisocial urges driven by unregulated emotional states.[16]

See also

References

  1. 123456Palmer, David (2017). "The action tendency for learning: Characteristics and antecedents in regular lessons". International Journal of Educational Research. 82: 99–109. doi:10.1016/j.ijer.2017.01.010.
  2. 12Vanberg, Viktor J. (October 2008). "On the Economics of Moral Preferences". The American Journal of Economics and Sociology. 67 (4) (published 2008-10-16): 605–628. doi:10.1111/j.1536-7150.2008.00589.x. ISSN 0002-9246.
  3. ↑Weiner, Bernard (1974). Cognitive Views of Human Motivation. Burlington: Elsevier Science. pp. 75–76. ISBN 978-0-12-741950-3.
  4. ↑Frijda, Nico H. (1987). "Emotion, cognitive structure, and action tendency". Cognition & Emotion. 1 (2): 115–143. doi:10.1080/02699938708408043. ISSN 0269-9931.
  5. 12345Roseman, Ira; Smith, Craig A (2001). "Appraisal theory: Overview, assumptions, varieties, controversies". ResearchGate. Archived from the original on 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2025-04-27.
  6. 123456Shen, Lijiang; Bigsby, Elisabeth (March 2010). "Behavioral Activation/Inhibition Systems and Emotions: A Test of Valence vs. Action Tendency Hypotheses". Communication Monographs. 77 (1): 1–26. doi:10.1080/03637750903514268. ISSN 0363-7751.
  7. ↑Lowe, Robert; Ziemke, Tom (2011). "The Feeling of Action Tendencies: On the Emotional Regulation of Goal-Directed Behavior". Frontiers in Psychology. 2. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00346. ISSN 1664-1078. PMC 3246364. PMID 22207854.
  8. ↑Posner, Eric A. (2001). "Law and the Emotions". Georgetown Law Journal. 89. University of Chicago: 1977–2012. doi:10.2307/1600478. ISSN 0041-9494. JSTOR 1600478. Archived from the original on 2020-03-22. Retrieved 2023-06-14.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. 12Frijda, Nico H. (July 2010). "Impulsive action and motivation". Biological Psychology. 84 (3): 570–579. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2010.01.005. PMID 20064583.
  10. ↑Frijda, Nico H. (1987). "Emotion, cognitive structure, and action tendency". Cognition & Emotion. 1 (2): 115–143. doi:10.1080/02699938708408043. ISSN 0269-9931.
  11. ↑Scherer, Klaus R. (December 2005). "What are emotions? And how can they be measured?". Social Science Information. 44 (4): 695–729. doi:10.1177/0539018405058216. ISSN 0539-0184.
  12. ↑Shuman, Vera; Scherer, Klaus R. (2013), "Concepts and Structures of Emotions", International Handbook of Emotions in Education, Routledge, pp. 13–35, doi:10.4324/9780203148211.ch2, ISBN 978-0-203-14821-1, retrieved 2025-04-27
  13. ↑Gartmeier, Martin; Hascher, Tina (2016-01-01), "Emotions in Learning with Video Cases", in Tettegah, Sharon Y.; McCreery, Michael P. (eds.), Emotions, Technology, and Learning, Emotions and Technology, San Diego: Academic Press, pp. 121–122, ISBN 978-0-12-800649-8, retrieved 2025-04-27
  14. ↑Steimer, Thierry (2002-09-30). "The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors". Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 4 (3): 231–249. doi:10.31887/DCNS.2002.4.3/tsteimer. ISSN 1958-5969. PMC 3181681. PMID 22033741.
  15. 12Gray, Peter O; Bjorklund, David (2018). Psychology (8th ed.). Macmillan Education. pp. 152–187.
  16. 1234Byrd, Amy L.; Loeber, Rolf; Pardini, Dustin A. (June 2014). "Antisocial Behavior, Psychopathic Features and Abnormalities in Reward and Punishment Processing in Youth". Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review. 17 (2): 125–156. doi:10.1007/s10567-013-0159-6. ISSN 1096-4037. PMC 5330364. PMID 24357109.
  17. ↑Wiers, Reinout W.; Rinck, Mike; Kordts, Robert; Houben, Katrijn; Strack, Fritz (February 2010). "Retraining automatic action-tendencies to approach alcohol in hazardous drinkers". Addiction. 105 (2): 279–287. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2009.02775.x. hdl:2066/90079. ISSN 0965-2140.
  18. 12Yzerbyt, Vincent; Dumont, Muriel; Wigboldus, Daniel; Gordijn, Ernestine (December 2003). "I feel for us: The impact of categorization and identification on emotions and action tendencies". British Journal of Social Psychology. 42 (4): 533–549. doi:10.1348/014466603322595266. ISSN 0144-6665. PMID 14715116.
  19. ↑Davidson, Richard J. (2006-01-24). "Darwin and the Neural Bases of Emotion and Affective Style". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 1000 (1): 316–336. doi:10.1196/annals.1280.014. ISSN 0077-8923.
  20. 12Harlé, Katia M.; Sanfey, Alan G. (December 2010). "Effects of approach and withdrawal motivation on interactive economic decisions". Cognition & Emotion. 24 (8): 1456–1465. doi:10.1080/02699930903510220. hdl:2066/99925. ISSN 0269-9931.
  21. ↑Solnais, Céline; Andreu-Perez, Javier; Sánchez-Fernández, Juan; Andréu-Abela, Jaime (June 2013). "The contribution of neuroscience to consumer research: A conceptual framework and empirical review". Journal of Economic Psychology. 36: 68–81. doi:10.1016/j.joep.2013.02.011. hdl:10044/1/23278.
  22. ↑Giancola, Marco; Palmiero, Massimiliano; D’Amico, Simonetta (2024-10-02). "Reappraise and be mindful! The key role of cognitive reappraisal and mindfulness in the association between openness to experience and divergent thinking". Journal of Cognitive Psychology. 36 (7): 834–843. doi:10.1080/20445911.2024.2399403. ISSN 2044-5911.
  23. 12Cutuli, Debora (2014-09-19). "Cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression strategies role in the emotion regulation: an overview on their modulatory effects and neural correlates". Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience. 8 175. doi:10.3389/fnsys.2014.00175. ISSN 1662-5137. PMC 4168764. PMID 25285072.
  24. ↑Oh, Sunyoung; Pyo, Jungmin (2023-10-27). "Creative Self-Efficacy, Cognitive Reappraisal, Positive Affect, and Career Satisfaction: A Serial Mediation Model". Behavioral Sciences. 13 (11): 890. doi:10.3390/bs13110890. ISSN 2076-328X. PMC 10669601. PMID 37998637.
  25. ↑Mesquita, B; Walker, R (July 2003). "Cultural differences in emotions: a context for interpreting emotional experiences". Behaviour Research and Therapy. 41 (7): 777–793. doi:10.1016/S0005-7967(02)00189-4. PMID 12781245.
  26. ↑Deluty, Robert H. (1979). "Children's Action Tendency Scale: A self-report measure of aggressiveness, assertiveness, and submissiveness in children". Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 47 (6): 1061–1071. doi:10.1037/0022-006X.47.6.1061. ISSN 1939-2117. PMID 512161.